Chinese tallow tree is a small, fast-growing, deciduous tree that grows to 30-40’ tall. It is typically seen in the wild as a suckering, multi-trunked tree with an irregular crown, but can easily be trained in cultivation as a single trunk tree with a rounded crown. Poplar-like, acuminate, medium green leaves (to 3” long) turn variable shades of yellow, orange, red and/or purple in fall. Monoecious yellow-green flowers in catkin-like spikes appear in spring. Flowers give way to three-lobed capsules, each lobe containing one seed. The outer layers of each capsule falls off in fall at maturity revealing three showy seeds covered with a waxy white coating. Seeds contrast well with fall foliage color and usually persist on the tree after leaf drop. In China, the seeds are harvested in fall for extracting vegetable tallow that is used in making candles and soaps, hence the common name. Mature fruit purportedly resembles popcorn, hence the sometimes used common name of popcorn tree. Stems produce a milky sap that is poisonous. Native to China and Japan, this tree has naturalized along the coast from South Carolina to Florida and Texas. Specific epithet comes from the Latin words sebum (tallow) and ferre (to bear) in reference to the seeds.